|
3.20.2003
Tracy F. King, 39; a master at balancing
Tracy F. King, a 39-year-old father of three, was a big, cheerful man
with a funny knack for balancing heavy objects on his chin.
People who had seen him do it called him "The Canoe Man," because
a 17-foot canoe was the first thing he ever balanced on his chin for millions
of late-night television viewers.
That was on The Late Show With David Letterman, in 1993, where viewers
saw Mr. King prove himself the rare guest who could stand toe-to-toe with
Letterman in an interview.
Balancing things was an odd talent that Mr. King acquired by accident
in his youth, when a surgeon operated on his right eardrum.
"They messed around with my equilibrium and I came out of it with
an acute sense of balance," he told a reporter in 1993.
At 6 feet, 2 inches tall and 300 pounds, Mr. King had a solid base for
balancing refrigerators, motor scooters, desks, ladders, Christmas trees
-- and, on German TV once, a woman sitting cross-legged in a chair.
He enjoyed performing on television here and abroad, and at county fairs,
art festivals, hospitals and schools. He lived in Warwick with his wife,
Evelyn, and their sons, and spent his free time lifting weights, cooking,
boating, fishing, and building radio-controlled model boats.
Mr. King's friend and personal manager, Al Salzillo of Nightside Entertainment,
said of the balancing act, "He was so into what he did. He was very,
very proficient in knowing everything there was to know about equilibrium
and balance, and being able to present it to kids."
"I can't recall being around him even once when he was down or
dejected," Salzillo said. "Anywhere we sent him to work, we
had people call up and say, this man is one of the most phenomenal people
-- as a man, not only as an entertainer, but as a person -- we can't wait
to have him back."
Mr. King, one of seven brothers and sisters, was born in Providence and
lived most of his life in Warwick. He was graduated from Toll Gate High
School in 1982 and later joined the Army, serving four years with the
Military Police, in Germany, Japan and Texas.
A licensed arborist, he went to work for the city in the spring of 2000.
At the time of his death, he was a laborer in the Highway Division, and
a member of Local 1651 of the American Federation of State, County and
Municipal Employees.
He was working his part-time security job at The Station club when the
fire broke out.
Mr. King's boss at his day job, Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian, said later,
"We're being told that he went back in to help people get out of
the fire, and that would fit in with his generous spirit and his attitude
toward people."
Sign
the Guest Book for Tracy F. King
Share
your thoughts and condolences for all of those lost
|
